Switch barrel and the like and method for its manufacture



June 9, 1931. R. K. WINNING I SWITCH BARREL AND THE LIKE AND METHOD FOR ITS MANUFACTURE Filed Feb. 11, 1924 /Z2%fl;t INIKENTOR. I 5957M ATTORNEY Patented June 9,1931

' tionship through her or barrel.

' uurrso STATES PATENT oFFicE RoBEn'r'x. WINNING,

SWITCH AND THE LIKE AND METHOD FOR ITS MANUFACTURE Application filed I'ebruary 11, 1924. Serial No. 602,015.

This invention relates to improvements in the art relating to switch barrels and thelike and methods for their manufacture. The invention is applicable to many different devices in which relatlvely movable parts are to be maintained in properly spaced rela- 'In a switchmechamsm it is very desirable that the relatively fixed plate containing the stationary contact and a relatively movable plate containing one or more movable cont acts shall be properly spaced and in absolute parallelism, so that in passing from one fixed contact to another the movable contact will always remain operatively in the same plane.

In the past, barrels constructed to contain a switch mechanism and the like have been made b various methods other than that herein isclosed, and it has been a general rule that in order to secure the desired accuracy such barrels have had-to be milled or otherwise surfaced subsequent to their initial formation.

Broadly speaking it is my primary object to cheapen the manufacture of switches and the like. More specifically stated, it is my object to rovide a simple and inexpensive method of manufacturing a switch barrel in a manner such that it will be absolutely true and accurate as soon as formed and will, therefore, not require the comparatively expensive manually controlled finishing or surfacing operations which have heretofore been necessary.

I propose to satisfy the above mentioned objects by constructing a switch casing from stampings, the switch barrel being cut out in the form of a flat blank and subsequently rolled to shape. I am aware that stam ing processes have been widely employe in various manufacturing fields, but I do not know that anyone has heretofore constructed lock barrels or casings after the method herein disclosed, nor do I believe that anyone has heretofore appreciated the startling economy effected by this method and due primarily to the fact that the opposite margins of a stamping may be made absolutely parallel so that when said stamping is rolled an interposed body memto comprise a cylinder its ends will have their or MILWAUKEE, wrsconsni, sssrcnon 'ro GLUM umurscroamo comm, or MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN I entire peripheral extent in perfectly parallel planes.

Other objects of this invention are to provide a switch construction in which assembly is facilitated b wholly eliminating the bolts and nuts w ich are commonly employed; to provide a switch construction in which the cylinder blank will be maintained in its proper sha e through interaction with the end p ates w ich comprise therewith the switch casing; to provide a construction in which the several blanks comprising the switch casing can be assembled but one way and will be provided with visible tactile indicia, whereb the workmen may lose no time inassem ly.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a lock switch embodying this invention.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1 and illustrating said switch in process of assembly, lng only partiall in place.

igure 3 is a eveloped view of the blank from which the barrel portion proper of the switch casing is formed.

Figure 4 1s a top plan view of the completed barrel portion of the casing.

Figure 5 is a side elevation of said portion. Figure 6 is a rear elevation of said portion. Figure 7 is a rear view 'of the assembled switch casing.

the back thereof be- Like parts are identified by the same refer- "once characters throughout the several views.

The switch casing or barrel which, in its entirety will be called hereinafter the casing, com rises a tubular member 10 which will hereinafter be termed the barrel, a relatively thin stamped metallic disk 11 comprising a front late for the casing, and a relatively thick ber disk 12 comprising the rear end wall of the casing. The front mar 'n 13 of barrel 10 'is provided with a series 0 tongues which may be disposed at substantially regular intervals, tongues 14 and 15 being located immediately adjacent the end margins of the blank from which the barrel is formed, the

15. The rear margin 17 of the barrelis proto receive both of the ton vided with a series of irregularly spaced ton es 18. The tongues 18 are all connected wit the barrel by means of peri herally enmetrical construction will be disclosed here-' inafter. I

The disk 11 is provided at 60 intervals with arcuate slots 22 of slight extent. These Slots are of such a size and are so disposed as to be adapted to receive tongues 16 when the formation of the barrel is complete. At one point in the periphe of the disk there is a slot 23 having twice t e peripheral extent of slot 16 and thereby rendered of sufiicient size gues 14 and 15 at the two ends of the blank from which the barrel is formed. It will be noted from the disclosure in the drawings that when the barrel is rolled into shape, ton es 14 and 15 will be brought adjacent eac other so that when these tongues are received in slot 23 the barrel will be maintained with its ends 24 and which they project), and thereby serve to secure the disk 11 andbarrel 10 rigidly together.

It is impractical to form slots of small dimensions in a fiber disk. Consequently, the disk 12 instead of being slotted is provided with broad shallow notches in its periphery at irregular intervals corresponding with the spacing of the bases 19 and 20 which project rearwardly from the margin of the barrel. The preferred positions of these-bases and notches are indicated in degrees in Figure 6. The bases fit into their respective notches like keys to secure the fiber disk 12 and the barrel against relative rotation and, due to the irregular spacing of keys and notches, there IS but one position in which the parts can be assembled. Due to the fact that the keys 20 are disposed in notches in the fiber disk 12,.

the unnotched peripheral portions of said disk will abut the margin 17 of the barrel just as the disk 11 abuts margin 13 thereof. The tongues 18 are now bent inwardly over those portions of the -fiber disk 12 adjacent the notches and, as a result, the fiber disk is rigidly and permanently attached to the barrel 10 of the casing in perfect parallelism with disk The fact that disks 11. and 12 are in absolute.

parallelism ensures the satisfactory operation of the switch, since no amount of rotation of a moving contact journaled in or carhicle.

ried by disk 11 will bring such contact-either nearer to or farther from the surface of fiber disk 12 in which stationary contacts are disposed. I

In the particular device herein illustrated two switches are disposed in the casing. This device is particularly adapted for use upon the dash of a motor vehicle, and consequently the two switches housed by the easing are intended to control res ectively the ignition and the li hting circuits of the ve- These SWiiKieS will not be described in detail, since the advantages of this construction will obviously be realized fully when an standard type of switch of the general 0 aracter described is employed. A brief description, however, of this particular switch is set forth in the following paragraphs.

The fixed contacts of both switches are disposed in disk 12 and comprise internally threaded metallic sleeves 27 which, for the purposes of this description, need not be identified individually. Generally speaking, however, the contacts of the i nition switch are disposed centrally of disk 12, while the contacts for the lighting switch are disposed nearer the periphery of said disk. Thus, the single sleeve 27 illustrated in Fig ure 2, is a fixed contact in the ignition circuit.

A pin 28 projecting inwardly from disk 12 centers a rotor including a dished actuating plate 29, insulating \plates 30 and 31, and a metallic conducting element 32 supported by springs 33 from the insulating plates 30 and 31, the latter being formed with recesses to provide seats for the springs. The conducting member 32 is provided with spherically rounded protuberances 35 which, in predetermined positions of rotation of the entire moving contact rotor, may be brought into registry with the sleeve-like stationary contacts 27. In the present device a lock barrel 36 secured to the face of disk 11 contains a lock of which 37 is the key. The

roper ke when inserted in the lock, will e rotatab e therein and its extremity 38 will engage in the dished member 29 to rotate the movable contact device of the ignition switch. It may be added that the cap member 29 is so arranged that its cylindrical portion, as indicated in Figure2, will be received within an annular flange 39 formed in disk 11, whereby the moving contact rotor of the ignition switch will be ided for rotation on an axis normal to the ace of disk 11.

- The lighting switch "includes a moving contact which comprises an annulus sur rounding the moving contact rotor of the ignition switch. This annulus includes a supporting member 40 having a portion 11 in face contact with the inner face of disk 11. Thesupporting member carries a pair of insulating annuli 42 and 43 from which a'conducting ring 44 having contact protuberances 45 is supported by means of springs 46. It will be understood that the protuberances 45 may be brought, by the rotation of the entire annular rotor, into operative registry with certain of the tubular stationary contacts27 carried by disk 12. Headed posts similar to that shown at 46 may be disposed at predetermined intervals to retain the circular contact member 44-within a given distance from the fiber plate 43. This distance may be lessened, however, when the protuberances 45 ride out of the stationary contact sleeves against the compression of s ring 46. The annular rotor receives motion from a cap 50 having a handle 51. This cap encloses the lock barrel 36 and has an annular flange 52 which seats against the outer surface of disk 11. The cap is retained in contact with said disk through the medium of a retaining rin 53 provided at intervals with tongues extending through suitable aperdisk, as indicated at 55.

11 and upset inwardly of said Similar tongues struck from cap 50 project through arcuate slots 56 in disk 11 and are engaged through apertures 57 in the portion 41 of the annular supporting member 40. Thus,upon the rotation of cap 50 within its retaining member 53, the oscillation of the cap will be transtures in disk mitted'through the said tongues to. the annular moving contact rotor or'the lighting switch. In various. positions of such rotor the protuberances 45 and the intermediate portions-of the conducting ring 44 will establish operative electrical connections-between selected stationary contact sleeves 27 in fiber'disk 12.

While the simplicity and cheapness of construction of the switch mechanism herein disclosed. will be obvious, it must likewise be clear that the more expensive and accurately fitted the switch mechanism may be, the the greater will be the need for absolute accuracy of-parallelalignment of the end surfaces of the barrel. Consequently, in a broad aspect, it is'immaterial to this invention whether the particular mechanism herein disclosed is mounted within the switch casing or whether any other known type of switch is used. In fact, I do not desire to limit this invention solely to use in connection with the construction of switches since many types of locks and latches are dependcut for their successful and accurate operation upon the alignment of the ends of their enclosing casing, and in all such mechanisms it will be advantageous to construct the barrel of the casing in the manner herein disclosed.

' such a way ripher of the The fi er disk 12, having been previously 'barrel10 by a stamping and rolling operation.. In Figure 3 I have illustrated the appearance in plan of the stamped blank from which the barrel is rolled. In the rolling operation, which may be performed manually but is preferably accomplished by machin-' ery, the two ends 24 and 25 of the blank are brought together so that the ears or tongues 14 are in immediate proximit The apearance of the rolled barrel is clearly shown in Figures 4, 5, and 6. Thereafter the disk 11. which has previously been stamped-to determine its form and to provide therein the several apertures required for tongues 14', 15, 16 and others, and to provide the flange 39, is now positioned with respect to the barrel in a that the single large aperture therein registers with tongues 14 and 15 which, at this time, project in an axial direction. The-remainder of tongues 16 will then register accurately with their respective apertures 22, and disk 11 may be pressed into place to contact firmly with the entire periphery 13 of the barrel. With the disk and the barrel in firm contact, tongues 14 and 15 are bent outwardly to connect these members in permanent fashion. It might be pos sible to bend the tongues upwardly to disconnect such members, but the tongues are not intended for this purpose, since, if bent repeatedl they must ultimately crack ofi'. With dis 11 and barrel 10 thus assembled,

it will obviously be impossible for the end margins 24 and 25 of the barrel blank to become separated due to the fact that tongues 14 and 15 are retained in a slot 23 which is barely sufficiently large to receive them.

As previously noted, the base members 20 really comprise keys and are at this time projecting axially from the barrel. Furthermore, they are unequally spaced about the pebarrel, as indicated in Figure 6.

formed with notches to receive these keys, and the switch mechanism or mechanisms having been assembled within the barrel, the disk 12 is now set in place with its central in 28 projecting into the receiving aperture in the rotor of the central switch. In order to ensure that the switch rotor, in its various operative positions will make operative contact with the desired terminals in disk 12, it is essential that the disk be so assembled to the barrel as to make possible only one setting or relative position ofthese members. This is the purpose for which the keys 20 are irregularly spaced about the periphery of the barrel, but if it were not for the provision of some sort of tangible indicia on the barrel and the disk 12, the, workman might spend considerable time in testing the various apparent positions of the disk with reference to the barrel to discover, by trial and error, the correct position at which these parts-may be assembled. To avoid loss of time in as sembly, I preferably provide disk'12 with some mark adjacent its periphery at the point on said disk which is to be brought opposite to that base 19 which carries no tongue 18. Thus, it will be understood that a tongue 18 is omitted from base 19 .to distinguish said primary function as a number it serves also,

by its position of application, to facilitate the lock assembly.

Having described my invention. both as regards to the construction of a casing embodying this invention and the method by which such a casing is asi IlllllO-(l, I wish to call attention once more to the fact which has heretofore been reiterated in the above description, that inasmuch as the blank from which barrel 10 is formed is made by a stamping or equivalentoperation, there can be no doubt as to the arallelism of the margins 13 and 17 of said b ank, and thereby absolute accuracy of performance of the lock is ensured without any necessity for hand work or milling work on said barrel. The end surfaces of the barrel may, by the same method and with equal'accuracy, be formed in angular planes.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a device of the character described, a tubular barrel having a cut from end to end in its wall, tongues integrally connected with said barrel adjacent the margins of said out on opposite sides thereof, and a disk clo sure secured to the end of said barrel and provided with means to receive said tongues and to key said tongues together, whereby to maintain said barrel in tubular form, the engagement of said tongues in said disk constituting the sole means at said end of the barrel for maintaining the margins of the barrel together. 7

2. In a device of the character described,

- asplit ring having tongues projecting axially from its marginal portions adjacent the split therein, and a closure for one end of said ring provided with spaced shoulders adapted es and to maintain t 0 ends of said split ring in substantial abutment.

3. In a device of the character described, the combination with a split ring having axially projecting tongues adjacent its ends and intermediate tongues at spaced intervals about its periphery,of a disk provided at intervals corresponding with the spacing of said intermediate tongues with apertures of sizejust sufi'icient to receive said intermediate tongues, and provided at a proper point with an aperture of just sufiicient size to receive said first mentioned tongues, all of said tongues being bent about portions of said disk adjacent said apertures, whereby said disk is secured to said ring and the ends of said ring are secured ,by said disk against separation, said disk extending beyond the periphery of said ring whereby the en agement of said tongues in the apertures 0 said ring maintains the form of said ring and secures its marginal portions against separation.

4. In adevice of the character described, the combination with a disk carrying a fixed contact, and a disk provided with a movable contact member; of an intermediate barrel maintaining said disks insubstantial parallelism and having unfinished marginal portionsabutting said disks, said barrel having integral tongues interlocked with the respective disks and upset upon the outside faces of the disks.'whereby to secu're said disks upon the barrel.

5. In a device of the character described, the combination with a disk provided with a fixed contact member and a disk provided with a movable contact member, of a barrel split from one end to the other and provided with tongues interlocked with one of saiddisks, two of said tongues being immediately adjacent and at opposite sides of the split in said barrel whereby its form is maintained, said disks being pressed into contact with the ends of said barrel, and such ends being in substantially exact parallelism, whereby said members are uniformly operative.

6. In a device of the character described,

the combination with a disk provided with v a fixed contact member, of a second disk, a movable member adjustable with respect to the second disk and having its plane of adjustment defined thereby, and a rolled sheet metal axially split barrel having unfinished end surfaces in substantially exact parallelism and axially projecting lugs bent into engagement with the respective disks and positioned in a ertures therein, said disks being retained thereby in abutment with opposite end surfaces of said barrel and two of said lugs being closely adjacent the portions of said barrels adjacent the split therein, and closely confined between opposing shoulders of one of the disks, whereby the form of said barrel is maintained and said members will be uniformly operative.

7 In a device of the character described, a barrel s lit from end to end and provided with axially projecting tongues at one end and with keys irregularly spaced peripherally about the other end and projecting said irre axially therefrom, said keys being provided with tongue portions extending beyond the keys, a disk clamped in enga ement with the first mentioned end of said iarrel and provided with a ertures receiving said tongues, the extremitles of said tongues being bent about adjacent portions of said disk, and a second disk of insulating material provided with notches in its margins adapted to receive said irregularly spaced keys, the tongues projecting from said keys having portions ent about said second disk to retain said second disk with its unnotched marginal portions in contact with the barrel.

8. In a device of the character described, a barrel split from end to end and provided with axially projecting tongues at one end and with keys irregularly spaced peripherally about the other end and projecting axially therefrom, said keys being provided with tongue portions extending beyondthe keys, a disk clamped in engagement with the first mentioned end of said barrel and provided with apertures receiving said tongues, the extremlties of said tongues being bent about ad'acent portions of said disk, a second disk 0 insulating material provided with notches in its margins adapted to receive larly spaced keys, the tonguesprojecting rom said keys having portions bent about said second disk to retain said second disk with its unnotched mar inal portions in contact with the barrel, an a key distinguished from the other keys on said barrel by the absence of a tongue thereon, said last mentioned key being received" in a suitable I notch in said last mentioned disk, and said disk being provided with an identifying mark arranged to lie adjacent said key.

ROBERT K. WINNING. 

